définition - 2005 english cricket season 1 16 july

2005 English cricket season (1–16 July)

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The period of the 2005 English cricket season from 1 to 16 July started with nine Twenty20 Cup games on1 July. Two were rained off, and indeed many games were shortened, but in the dark weather Worcestershire beat Warwickshire by a solitary run yet again, while Lancashire won the Roses battle with Yorkshire by 110 runs. On the following day, a Saturday, England and Australia battled it out for the NatWest Series trophy - which was ultimately shared, as the English pulled off a remarkable recovery, coming back from 33 for 5 to tie the match with a final score of 196 for 9. In weekend matches in the Twenty20 Cup, Northamptonshire and Lancashire recorded wins to stay on course for the quarter-finals.

On 4 July, Warwickshire took an important victory over Somerset, to close the gap to the quarter-final spots, while Lancashire qualified with a win over Derbyshire Phantoms. The following day, Essex beat Surrey in a five-over-game to keep their hopes alive, but Surrey remained on top of the table after five wins in their first six games to qualify for the knock-out stages. Northamptonshire joined them with a no-result on the same day.

The final round of the group stage of the Twenty20 Cup was played on 6 July. Essex were knocked out, thanks to a five-run loss to Kent, while both Middlesex and Surrey made it through despite losses - their conquerors, Sussex and Hampshire, were both knocked out. Warwickshire and Somerset qualified from the Midlands/Wales/West Division thanks to wins over Northamptonshire and Gloucestershire respectively, while Derbyshire sneaked through from the North Division after a win over Nottinghamshire, and Leicestershire defeated Yorkshire to join them.

England won the first match of the three-ODI NatWest Challenge with Australia, chasing 220 with ease to win by nine wickets, but followed up with a seven-wicket loss three days later to leave the series hanging in the balance before the 12 July final game at The Oval. Meanwhile, Essex cruised to their seventh victory in the totesport League to increase their lead over Middlesex to four points, all while County Championship matches were being played from 8 July to 11 July.

Nottinghamshire enjoyed the lead in the Championship's Division One for a couple of days after beating Glamorgan by ten wickets - Glamorgan's eighth loss - but Kent, whose match started on 10 July took the lead back despite losing to Sussex, the six bonus points being enough to top the table. Middlesex beat Hampshire to keep themselves out of the relegation zone, while Surrey played out their fifth draw of the season with Gloucestershire. In Division Two, Durham's lead was slashed from 21 points to 11 after losing to Lancashire by an innings and 228 runs - the highest margin in the County Championship all season - but Worcestershire, the team second before this match, failed to take advantage as they went down to Yorkshire by three wickets, thus falling to third - Yorkshire were fourth, trailing by one and a half points, and Essex fifth after beating Northamptonshire.

On 12 July, the third and final match of the NatWest Challenge was played, and England were well and truly outplayed by Australia to lose 1–2 in the series. On the following day, Surrey got off the last place in Division Two of the totesport League thanks to a three-run victory over Yorkshire, but they were knocked out of the C&G Trophy on 15 July - Hampshire, Lancashire, Warwickshire and Yorkshire reached the semi-final stage.

Surrey v Kent (1 July)

Kent Spitfires suffered another loss, this time at the Oval against Surrey Lions. In a rain-hit game shortened by five overs, Surrey scored freely, hitting at nearly 11 runs an over - Ali Brown with 29 and Scott Newman with 52 not out off 27 balls doing the brunt of the damage. Kent made an attempt at chasing 168, with Michael Carberry taking 23 runs off nine balls in his innings from number three, but Surrey spinner Nayan Doshi took four wickets for 27 to set them back to 123 for 6. With economical bowling from Azhar Mahmood as well, Kent only managed 144 for 8.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Sussex v Hampshire (1 July)

Sussex (2pts) beat Hampshire (0pts) by 10 runs

A twelve-over game at Hove was won by Sussex Sharks, though the rain threatened to destroy it all. Ian Ward and Matt Prior opened the batting for Sussex, who had been sent in to bat by Hampshire Hawks' captain Shaun Udal, and they made good use of it, sending Sussex to 53 for 0. Two quick wickets from Sean Ervine slowed the Sharks' progression, as they slumped to 88 for 5, but Michael Yardy hit 10 in four balls in an unbeaten 11-run sixth-wicket stand with Carl Hopkinson. Chasing, Hampshire never quite kept up with the required run rate, as Mushtaq Ahmed took three for 19 in his three overs to be the main cause of the Hawks' demise, and Hampshire finished on 89 for 6.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Warwickshire v Worcestershire (1 July)

Worcestershire (2pts) beat Warwickshire (0pts) by one run

Worcestershire Royals took their second successive one-run victory over Warwickshire Bears, to the agony of home fans at Edgbaston. After Heath Streak took two early wickets, Neil Carter entered the scene as the sixth bowler to be used. He took five wickets inside four overs, for 19 runs, as Worcestershire were all out for 141 with seven balls to spare. In reply, two run-outs and wickets from Gareth Batty and Zander de Bruyn left Warwickshire trailing by 60 with one wicket in hand, with Heath Streak and James Anyon at the crease. Streak rotated the strike well, facing most of the balls and hitting most of the runs, and brought the score to 140 for 9 with a ball to spare. Then - setting off for the last run that would tie the scores (and win the match for Warwickshire on fewer wickets lost) - Streak was run out for 59, off 32 balls, and Warwickshire's quarter-final hopes were dented, but not wiped out.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Lancashire v Yorkshire (1 July)

Lancashire (2pts) beat Yorkshire (0pts) by 110 runs

Lancashire Lightning recorded the most emphatic victory by runs in the 2005 Twenty20 season, as they had fun with the Yorkshire Phoenix bowlers. After being put in to bat, Mal Loye and Stuart Law put on 106 for the first wicket, and when Loye departed for 47 Brad Hodge followed up with a 17-ball 33, a partnership of 77 with Law. Despite Ian Harvey digging into them with two wickets, the early run-rate ensured that Lancashire set a target of 208, Law recording the second Twenty20 century this season - in 56 balls. Ian Harvey, the man responsible for the first of those centuries, was out early for 1, and wickets fell to everyone as Yorkshire were out for 97 - Dominic Cork taking three for 10, Muttiah Muralitharan three for 17, and James Anderson two for 26. Matthew Hoggard and Tim Bresnan recorded the highest partnership for Yorkshire, with 22 for the tenth wicket.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Nottinghamshire v Derbyshire (1 July)

Derbyshire (2pts) beat Nottinghamshire (0pts) by four wickets

Derbyshire Phantoms needed to win to have a chance of qualifying for the quarter-finals - and did it, in a thriller finish. Nottinghamshire Outlaws batted first, and Will Smith and Chris Read made 51 and 44 not out respectively. The pair where the only two Nottinghamshire batsmen to pass 20, their contributions lifted the hosts to 147 for 8. Michael di Venuto and Luke Sutton took Derbyshire to 92 for 1 before economical bowling chipped away at Derbyshire's batting. However, captain Sutton kept a cool head, anchoring the chase with 61 not out in 54 balls as Derbyshire won with two balls to spare.(Cricinfo scorecard)

The final of the NatWest Series ended in an anticlimax for the visitors, but throughout it gave entertainment to the crowd - despite being a relatively low-scoring game. It didn't look to be low-scoring early on, though, as Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden punished the England opening bowlers Darren Gough and Simon Jones to be 50 for 0 after 6.3 overs. Two balls later, Hayden went for one expansive stroke too many - driving to Ashley Giles at mid-off for 17. England captain Michael Vaughan brought his change bowlers on, first Andrew Flintoff for Jones (who had been taken for 29 runs in his first three overs) and then the big man from Ashington, Steve Harmison.

Those changes turned the match on its head. Instead of the Australian batsmen taking easy runs off the English bowlers, the English bowlers now tied down the batting, getting rewards in the form of wickets. Gilchrist gave a catch to Kevin Pietersen at short leg for 27, and when Harmison was brought on a couple of overs later, he immediately got a wicket - of Ricky Ponting for 7, and Australia were 71 for 3 after 12.1 overs. Damien Martyn and Andrew Symonds decided to retreat into their shell, as the English bowling turned from difficult to nigh-on unhittable, Flintoff getting a touch on the off-stump of Symonds, but the bail didn't fall off, so he survived. However, the pair could only add 19 from 35 deliveries, before Harmison had Martyn caught behind with a ball that moved away from the batsman, off the waiting edge and into Geraint Jones' gloves.

Following the dismissal of Martyn, Vaughan brought back Jones - realising that Australia were reluctant to hit runs and thus allowing Jones to get through his overs without causing as much damage as he did early on. In fact, he and Harmison were part of a remarkable streak - they served up 28 successive dot-balls to Symonds and Michael Clarke (who bowed under to the pressure and was hit on the pad, out lbw for a 19-ball two). However, Michael Hussey - facing his first ball at 93 for 5 after 25 overs - took control of Jones, and when Harmison was taken off, Australia were let off the hook.

Symonds and Hussey batted out 15 overs, but Symonds struggled to hit runs and eventually smashed a drive to Andrew Strauss, who took a grateful catch, thus ending Symonds' innings for 29 - off 71 balls, a good innings in Test cricket but in ODI cricket virtually useless. Michael Vaughan then used a strange bowling change, keeping spinner Ashley Giles on for an over more than required and thus borrowing one from Andrew Flintoff who wasn't allowed to bowl a full ten. In the event, it mattered little. Flintoff had ample time to rip out Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie, and, with Harmison taking care of Brad Hogg and Glenn McGrath committing batting suicide with a shot not exactly out of the textbook, Australia were all out for 196 - and England were comfortably in the drivers' seat.

That was before they got in to bat, however. England survived the first three overs, bowled by McGrath and Lee, without loss. From then on, however, the English lost wickets by the bucketful. England went from 11 for 0 to 19 for 4 in the space of four overs, as the bowlers put the pressure on immediately, and their entire top-order came and went for single-figure scores. Paul Collingwood and Andrew Flintoff survived for a couple more overs, before Flintoff edged McGrath to slip - the score 33 for 5, and England should see themselves lucky to bat out 50 overs - or even score 100 runs. Collingwood and Geraint Jones decided to wait, giving McGrath maiden overs (as he finished his first bowling spell with figures of 7-4-9-3), and despite the batsmen being rapped on the pads, they survived, even taking the occasional six off Jason Gillespie.

After 25 overs, England were 65 for 5, but the Australian spinners didn't get too much out of the track. Dot-balls flourished, but the partnership kept in there, and a second six - from Jones off Hogg - showed their intent. After thirty-five overs, England were 113 for 5, and required a run a ball, with four overs of Lee and three of McGrath still to negotiate. However, England kept pushing, never letting the run-rate get above 7. Skipper Ponting showed some desperation when he brought Michael Hussey on with nine overs to spare, knowing that the spinners couldn't keep it tight, but got his reward in Hussey's second over when Collingwood was run out for 53 - off 116 balls.

Then Geraint Jones smacked two fours off Hussey to end the over, meaning that England needed 39 off 36 balls. Five balls later, a miscued sweep off Hogg hit Geraint Jones on the pads - gone for 71 - and England only had three wickets to spare. Two more balls were delivered before that tally was cut down to two - Hussey bowled Simon Jones for a two-ball one, so with Gough and Giles in, England needed 35 off 29 balls. Despite taking the runs off Hussey, Brett Lee's 47th over only yielded a single, as his variations of length turned out to be just the thing. However, Ponting now needed another over from either Hussey, Hogg or Symonds - deciding to use Hussey, he was punished, as Giles hit twos to both the off and leg side, and a wide from Hussey resulting in a nine-run over. Lee then came back on, and with his short ball had Giles playing a definitely unorthodox stroke - a sliced edge over Gilchrist's head for four.

Singles were taken to end the over, but McGrath was to bowl the last over of the game, with England still needing ten to win. Things got easier for England when McGrath overstepped with the first ball of the over, Gough making contact and running the single to cut the target by two - the no-ball for overstepping and the run single - and the no-ball meant McGrath still had to bowl six balls in the over. Giles then played and missed, before hitting a single, and then Gough drove the two next balls to cover for two. Suddenly, England only needed three off two - and were, incredibly, in a winning position again. But Gough's next shot was right back to McGrath, who took it up well and tossed it at the stumps, running out Gough and meaning that McGrath would bowl to Ashley Giles - and England still required three to win. The ball hit Giles' pads, ran away down the off side, and Giles and Harmison ran all they could to scamper two leg-byes - and tie the game.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Essex v Surrey (5 July)

Essex (2pts) beat Surrey (0pts) by one run

Rain ravaged The County Ground, Chelmsford and delayed the match between Essex Eagles and Surrey Lions to after ten o'clock. When it finally began, it had been shortened to five overs a side, and Essex made good use of it as they scored 71 for 3 - Ronnie Irani making 32, while Azhar Mahmood took two for three for Surrey. In reply, Antonio Palladino took two wickets for Essex, but it looked up for grabs when Surrey needed eight off five after James Middlebrook bowled a wide that went for four - however, he only conceded six runs from the remaining balls of the game, and Surrey finished on 70 for 2. Yet, they would have to be exceedingly unlucky in their last game to be eliminated, while Essex jumped into the top three and looked to qualify along with them.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Warwickshire v Somerset (4 July)

Warwickshire (2pts) beat Somerset (0pts) by 47 runs

Warwickshire Bears jumped on the quarter-final train just as it seemed to be leaving the station, grabbing the ticket out of the hands of Somerset Sabres. Neil Carter and Ian Bell opened the batting and scored quickly, sending the score to 40 for 1, but part-timer William Durston got three wickets in quick succession to have three for four at one point. Trevor Penney then smashed three successive sixes off Durston to end with 35 not out off 13 balls. Thus, Warwickshire closed on 172 for 8, and patient bowling from Carter and Alex Loudon sent them crumbling to 89 for 6. Arul Suppiah and Durston paired up for 27 for the seventh wicket, but when Suppiah was bowled by Jonathan Trott it looked hopeless for Somerset. Jamie Anyon wrapped them up with a hat-trick to end Somerset's innings on 125.(Cricinfo scorecard)

North Division

Lancashire v Durham (3 July)

Lancashire (2pts) beat Durham (0pts) by 37 runs

Mal Loye and Brad Hodge helped Lancashire Lightning to recover after Stuart Law was stumped in the second over off Durham Dynamos medium-pacer Neil Killeen. Loye and Hodge paired up for 169 for the second wicket, as Loye became the second Lancastrian to score a Twenty20 century this season before he was eventually caught off Nathan Astle's bowling for 100. Lancashire closed on 208 for 4, and only Killeen conceded less than 30 runs of Durham's six bowlers. Astle got the best bowling figures, with two for 37, but his batting helped little - 55 for 37 was never enough to keep up with the asking rate of 10.5. When Durham realised that, they tried to lash out, and a result, wickets tumbled to Glen Chapple and Dominic Cork and Durham finished their 20 overs with the score on 171 for 7.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Yorkshire v Nottinghamshire (3 July)

Nottinghamshire (2pts) beat Yorkshire (0pts) by six wickets

Nottinghamshire won the toss at Headingley and put Yorkshire into bat. The hosts suffered an immediate setback when Ian Harvey was out from the first ball to Andrew Harris, but Craig White and Phil Jaques settled the ship, with Jaques going on to score 55 off 33 balls. Richard Pyrah finished the innings with 31 off 17 as Yorkshire set their guests a target of 181 to win. The start of Nottinghamshire's innings was the opposite to Yorkshire's: openers Will Smith (55) and Graeme Swann (62) put on 101 before they were parted, as Swann slashed nine fours, three sixes, and also had time to run eight times across the pitch in a 25-ball frenzy. Yorkshire took the next four wickets for 50 runs, with leg spinnerMark Lawson grabbing two, and with a high total to chase the game was in the balance. However, Chris Read's 28 off 18 balls saw Nottinghamshire home with just two balls to go. (Cricinfo scorecard)

Derbyshire v Lancashire (4 July)

Big scores from Stuart Law (67) and Brad Hodge (90 not out) helped Lancashire Lightning to a massive 205 for 2 at The County Ground, Derby, medium-pacer Ian Hunter taking both wickets. Law and Hodge shared a 154-run stand for the second wicket. Two early wickets from former EnglandODI player James Anderson pegged Derbyshire Phantoms back, and Brad Hodge took four for 27 - his second Twenty20 four-wicket-haul of the season - to reduce Derbyshire to 106 for 7, before rain intervened with 5.3 overs left in the game. The rain never relented, and it was calculated that Derbyshire's par score was 156, thus Lancashire took a convincing 50-run victory. The victory meant that Lancashire qualified for the quarter-finals with one game to spare.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Durham v Yorkshire (4 July)

Yorkshire (2pts) beat Durham (0pts) by 40 runs

Yorkshire Phoenix got their first win in three Twenty20 games, but the quarter-finals still looked out of sight, as they needed to win their last game and Derbyshire lose their last. Batting first, Ian Harvey, Craig White and Paul Jaques all made scores between 40 and 60, to lift Yorkshire to 126 for 1 at one point. Off-spinner Gary Scott and medium-pacer Dale Benkenstein took three wickets between them, but Yorkshire still managed 171 for 7. Durham Dynamos looked in the game when Benkenstein and Gordon Muchall were at the crease, pairing up for 79 for the fourth wicket, but a burst of wickets - thanks to Richard Dawson and Anthony McGrath's bowling - sent Durham to the ropes at 111 for 8. Twelve minutes later, it was all over for 131, with 17 deliveries remaining. Yorkshire's 30-year-old seam bowlerAdam Warren took two for 32 on Twenty20 debut.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Middlesex v Hampshire (6 July)

Hampshire (2pts) beat Middlesex (0pts) by six wickets

In a high-scoring match at Richmond, Middlesex Crusaders made 174 for 7 having opted to bat first. Owais Shah made yet another fifty - his fifth in eight innings - while Scott Styris and Paul Weekes made quick scores to up the run-rate. Shaun Udal, Sean Ervine and Craig McMillan all got two wickets. Hampshire Hawks started slowly, at about seven an over, but McMillan took a liking to Chris Peploe in particular as he smashed five sixes in his half-hour 65 not out, and thanks to McMillan's big hitting Hampshire won with sixteen balls and six wickets to spare. However, it was in vain - with only three wins, they finished fourth in the South Division tables, while Middlesex qualified despite having a poorer net run rate than Hampshire.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Surrey v Sussex (6 July)

Sussex (2pts) beat Surrey (0pts) by three wickets

Surrey Lions were consistently pegged back by the Sussex Sharks' bowling at The Oval, having been put in to bat by Sussex captain Chris Adams. Azhar Mahmood stood firm and knocked off 40 unbeaten runs, but Naved-ul-Hasan, James Kirtley and Mushtaq Ahmed all got two wickets for less than six runs an over as Surrey eventually had to settle for 144 for 8. In reply, Ian Ward made a quickfire 50, off 28 balls, before being bowled by Surrey off-spinnerNayan Doshi to send Sussex to 82 for 3. Adams and Murray Goodwin both made 28, while Azhar Mahmood took two for 21 from four overs. Eventually, a six from Naved-ul-Hasan won Sussex the game with three balls to spare to put them third in the table, but as they were the poorest third-placed side in the competition with only three wins, they were still knocked out.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Midlands/Wales/West Division

Somerset v Gloucestershire (6 July)

Somerset (2pts) beat Gloucestershire (0pts) by 95 runs

Somerset Sabres made it through to the quarter-finals after recording a massive score of 228 for 5 in twenty overs - the highest team total in Twenty20 Cup history, eclipsing a record set a couple of weeks earlier. The most economical bowler was Steve Kirby, and he conceded 35 runs in four overs, while the other four where all taken for more than 40 runs. Graeme Smith top-scored with 53, Ian Blackwell made 45, and James Hildreth recorded 32 off 10 balls - 28 from six shots to the boundary and four from the other four deliveries. Somerset's innings featured eight sixes and twenty extras. Gloucestershire Gladiators, who were second in the Midland/Wales/West group before this game at Taunton, had to go for expansive strokes, and were all out in sixteen overs, Gareth Andrew taking four for 22 while Craig Spearman top scored with 35 off 17 balls. Keith Parsons also contributed bowling-wise, taking three for 12.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Warwickshire v Northamptonshire (6 July)

Warwickshire (2pts) beat Northamptonshire (0pts) by 41 runs

Warwickshire Bears were lifted to a total of 205 for 2 by hitting eight sixes at Edgbaston, Ian Bell carrying his side with 66 not out off just 38 balls. Nick Knight also made 61 as Northamptonshire Steelbacks failed to make any impact with the ball. The Northamptonshire reply was stifled by some reasonably economical bowling, with no regular bowler conceding more than eight an over, and good fielding which yielded one run out and stopped the boundaries. Warwickshire seamer Jamie Anyon took three for 34, for his second successive match with a three-wicket haul, while Usman Afzaal became top scorer with a run-a-ball 43. Ben Phillips hit 41 not out from number four to complement his bowling figures of two for 43. In the end, Northamptonshire made 164 for 6, but still went through - along with Warwickshire, who finished second in their group thanks to their win over Somerset two days earlier.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Worcestershire v Glamorgan (6 July)

Worcestershire (2pts) beat Glamorgan (0pts) by 37 runs

Both Worcestershire Royals and Glamorgan Dragons were knocked out before the last round of the Twenty20 Cup group stage, so the match at New Road was fairly academic. It didn't stop Worcestershire from amassing one of the highest scores in Twenty20 Cup history with 223 for 9 - Ben Smith only taking 45 balls to smack 105 off the Glamorgan bowlers, with twelve fours and six sixes, as he lifted his career Twenty20 average from 15 to 20.62. The partnership of 149 with Graeme Hick was enough to win the match for Worcestershire, as Glamorgan never quite got the hang of Shoaib Akhtar - who bowled two overs for 14 with a no-ball and a wide. Glamorgan ended up only losing five wickets, but 224 was always too much to ask, and they finished with a total 186 for 5.(Cricinfo scorecard)

North Division

Derbyshire v Nottinghamshire (6 July)

Derbyshire (2pts) beat Nottinghamshire (0pts) by nine wickets

Nottinghamshire Outlaws were limited to 139 for 5 by economical Derbyshire Phantoms bowling - which allowed them to take singles and not much more at Derby. Only ten boundaries were hit during Nottinghamshire's innings, all in fours, and Chris Read - usually a man with a high strike-rate - was limited to 29 off 31 balls. The Derbyshire reply was spearheaded by Michael di Venuto who made an unbeaten 77 and added 92 with Jonathan Moss for the second wicket. Derbyshire passed their target with nine wickets and 20 balls in hand, and the victory gave them a quarter-final berth.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Leicestershire v Yorkshire (6 July)

Leicestershire (2pts) beat Yorkshire (0pts) by seven wickets

With a lot of luck with other results, Yorkshire Phoenix could have qualified for the quarter-finals with a win in this game against Leicestershire Foxes. However, as Ian Harvey's support batsmen failed to score at more than three an over until Anthony McGrath came in at five with the scoreboard on 84 for 3, their innings was eventually worth just 177 for 5 - Harvey making 77 of those and McGrath 33. In reply, opening batsman Darren Maddy anchored the innings with 72 not out, and Jeremy Snape saw off the required runs as he hit 39 off 23 balls and the Foxes won with nine balls and seven wickets to spare. Leicestershire, who needed a tie or better to be completely assured of the quarter-final spot, thus went through.(Cricinfo scorecard)

England all-rounderPaul Collingwood came on as third-change bowler, and used the helpful conditions to incite Ponting's demise, as Kevin Pietersen held a catch to dismiss the Australian captain for 14, and Collingwood continued to end with four wickets for 34 runs, as Australia slumped from 107 for 2 to 159 for 6 - all wickets courtesy of Collingwood. However, Michael Hussey showed his skills from number seven yet again, as he made a 52-ball 46 - while the ball was still moving around due to the cloud cover - and lifted Australia to 219 for 7.

The English reply was initially jittery. The pace of Brett Lee and accuracy of Glenn McGrath shook the English opening batsmen Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Strauss. Trescothick, for example, was caught off a no-ball from Lee, but survived, as the openers lasted nearly 25 overs - before Strauss was caught behind off Brad Hogg for 41. By that time, however, the sun had come out, the ball didn't swing much in the air, and as Lee kept on bowling no-balls - seven in total - things simply wouldn't work out for Australia. Trescothick used 132 balls to bring up his century, skipper Michael Vaughan made a healthy contribution with 59 not out, and England brought up the winning total with four overs to spare.(Cricinfo scorecard)

County Championship

Division one

Gloucestershire v Surrey (8-11 July)

Gloucestershire (8pts) drew with Surrey (12pts)

At tea on day 2, it seemed inconceivable that, barring rain, this game would go to a draw, but Surrey failed to turn the screw and were denied victory by Alex Gidman and Steve Adshead. Surrey won the toss and opted to bat, and after Scott Newman and Richard Clinton had added 136 for the first wicket, things looked promising for the visitors to Bristol. With seven fifties - numbers 7, 8 and 9 Azhar Mahmood, Martin Bicknell and Harbhajan Singh all adding more than 75 runs - but no century, Surrey amassed 603 before being bowled out at lunch, none of the four bowlers conceding less than 100 runs. This was also the highest total without a century in England, breaking a 106-year-old record by Nottinghamshire, and the second highest total without a century in first-class cricket.

Then, a burst of three wickets from Rikki Clarke sent Gloucestershire to the ropes at 83 for 5. Alex Gidman, Mark Hardinges and Ian Fisher lifted the first-innings total to 288, still trailing by 325, but Gidman and wicket-keeper Adshead had more tricks saved for the second innings. Gloucestershire batted a marathon 157.2 overs against the Surrey spin-bowling - Harbhajan bowling 49 of those - Gidman made a six-hour 142, Adshead pairing up with him for a little over four of those hours to add 93, and the second-innings total read 494. Surrey were eventually set a target of 180 to win in eleven overs. and not even Twenty20 style hitting from Azhar Mahmood, who hit three fours and one six in his 26 could send them to that, as they finished with 84 for 3.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Middlesex v Hampshire (8-11 July)

Middlesex (19pts) beat Hampshire (7pts) by two wickets

Hampshire won the toss and chose to bat at a Southgate wicket which the final scores suggested to be not as batting-friendly as a month ago, when 13 wickets fell in the Championship match between Middlesex and Glamorgan. Three wickets from Chris Peploe set the visitors back to 189 for 7, but a 79-ball century from Shane Warne - just in time to get some Ashes form - lifted them to 355. The returning Irishman, Ed Joyce, made 54 for Middlesex, and Jamie Dalrymple made 62, but despite those innings - and 37 extras - Middlesex could only scamper 272.

Hampshire were leading by 104 overnight with one wicket down, but the third day belonged to Dalrymple. The Kenyan-born off-spinner took four for 53, including internationals John Crawley and Craig McMillan, as Hampshire imploded to 192. A Twenty20 style hit-out from Owais Shah, who made 60 off 56 balls, lifted Middlesex to 168 for 4 at stumps, and as the Hampshire captain Warne chose to bowl himself over after over despite being smashed out of the park (ending with 108 runs off nearly 30 overs for only two wickets), Middlesex reached the target shortly before lunch on day four with two wickets to spare, despite losing three wickets to Shaun Udal and two to Zimbabwean part-timer Greg Lamb.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Nottinghamshire v Glamorgan (8-11 July)

Nottinghamshire (22pts) beat Glamorgan (5pts) by ten wickets

Glamorgan continued on their woeful season, enduring their eighth loss in nine County Championship games, this time to Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge. The hosts won the toss and sent Glamorgan in to bat, and got wickets, admittedly while conceding runs quickly in the process - the final score was 261 in 61 overs. Chris Read, the former England wicket-keeper, then made his fifth first-class century with a 117-ball ton, only to be departed by Nottinghamshire's last man Mark Footitt shortly afterwards - left stranded on 103 not out. Nottinghamshire, however, had made it to a total of 425, and Footitt made amends with the ball, taking four for 45 amid no-balls and wides. Glamorgan were swiftly taken out for 214, as nine batsmen made it into double figures but none could go beyond 35, and Nottinghamshire openers Darren Bicknell and Jason Gallian eased past the target of 57 as Nottinghamshire recorded a full-score win.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Kent v Sussex (10-13 July)

Sussex (21pts) beat Kent (6pts) by 66 runs

Sussex took hand of a see-sawing match at Canterbury, mainly thanks to their Pakistani overseas players Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Mushtaq Ahmed, who took fourteen wickets between them. The hosts Kent won the toss and put Sussex in to bat, and after an initial opening partnership of 65, two wickets fell quickly. However, an opener Ian Ward completed his century, and 63 from Murray Goodwin swung it Sussex's way to 210 for 2 before South African all-rounderAndrew Hall took two quick wickets. Sussex quickly slumped to 298 for 8, but captain Chris Adams stood firm, making 83 as Sussex batted into the second day - making 378 in the end. Curiously, Simon Cook of Kent bowled eleven maidens in 24 overs, but conceded 57 runs in the other 13.

Kent looked to be well on the way to posting a challenging total, as they were on 323 for 6 at stumps on day 2, with four of their batsmen making fifties. However, day three saw a total of twenty wickets tumble. First, Kent lost four wickets to be all out for 348, trailing by 30. Then, after Michael Yardy and Goodwin had rescued to Sussex to 89 for 2 after both openers had been removed for sub-20 scores, Sussex fell apart. Min Patel ran through the middle-order, Dane Amjad Khan took care of the tail, and Sussex were all out for 155, setting a target of 186. However, accurate bowling was enough to undo Kent, as no Kent batsmen passed 35 and Naved-ul-Hasan and Mushtaq Ahmed shared eight wickets - Kent were all out for 119, but retained the County Championship lead, as their closest competitors failed to win.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Division two

Durham v Lancashire (8-11 July)

Lancashire (22pts) beat Durham (1pt) by an innings and 228 runs

Durham were a prime example of how the lack of three men can change a team. Three months earlier, Michael Hussey, Paul Collingwood and Steve Harmison had been firing for the Durham lads as they beat Leicestershire by an innings and 216 runs, the highest margin of victory in the County Championship so far this season - before this match. Without these three, and only with Nathan Astle and Ashley Noffke by way of replacement, they collapsed to 167 against the bowling of Glen Chapple and Gary Keedy, before Mal Loye made a double ton and Dominic Cork an unbeaten ton to give Lancashire a 363-run lead on first innings. Then, Chapple took four for 18, as Durham rolled over yet again for 135 - and all of the sudden the league leaders were transformed into laughing stocks.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Somerset v Leicestershire (8-11 July)

Somerset (22pts) beat Leicestershire (6pts) by ten wickets

Graeme Smith was the difference between the two teams at Taunton. After Leicestershire had made 330 in the first innings, with wicket-keeper Paul Nixon top scoring with 62 not out, it was time for the South African captain. Farming the strike exquisitely, he smashed 27 fours and eleven sixes in a career highest score of 311 - while his partners were sensible enough to not leave him stranded. Thus, Somerset made 566, and Andy Caddick and Charl Langeveldt paired up with good fast bowling to send Leicestershire down to 189 for 6. All-rounderIan Blackwell then took three tail-end wickets to leave a target of 18 runs with more than a day to spare, and Somerset knocked off the runs inside six overs to win by ten wickets.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Worcestershire v Yorkshire (8-11 July)

Yorkshire (20pts) beat Worcestershire (4pts) by three wickets

Yorkshire closed the gap to the promotion spots from 6.5 to 1.5 points after a three-wicket win at New Road over Worcestershire. Matthew Hoggard got a good return to form after being smashed out of the Twenty20 format with an economy rate of 11, taking three for 68 in Worcestershire's first innings, yet the hosts made 345 before being bowled out shortly before stumps on day 1. Richard Pyrah, playing his first first-class game of the season, and Craig White then rescued Yorkshire from 113 for 4 with fifties, but Nadeem Malik and Kabir Ali finished with three wickets each to get them all out for 300, trailing by 45. Then, Tim Bresnan took two early wickets before stumps, and continued on day three to end with career-best figures of five for 42. However, another England prospect, Kabir Ali, took four more wickets, as Yorkshire were 222 for 6 overnight - needing 46 runs to win. They lost wicket-keeperIsmail Dawood early, but were not pegged back further, and Richard Dawson made 51 not out to lead them to the target. Worcestershire were also docked two points for a slow over rate.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Essex v Northamptonshire (10-13 July)

Essex (22pts) beat Northamptonshire (3pts) by ten wickets

Essex won a spin-dominated match at Chelmsford. Batting first, Essex made 506 against Northamptonshire - whose normally astute spin attack was batted out of the game. Monty Panesar took a career best seven-wicket-haul in the innings, but conceded 181 runs in the process, bowling a mammoth 56.3 overs. The Northamptonshire reply was stifled by four wickets from James Middlebrook, as they crumbled to 141 for 6, but Ben Phillips and Damien Wright added 95 for the seventh wicket before Tony Palladino grabbed three wickets in four balls, and they finished on 247. Following on, Northamptonshire had made 203 for 2 when Essex' captain Ronnie Irani brought Alastair Cook on as seventh-bowler. The off-spinner, normally an opening batsmen, claimed his three first first-class wickets as three wickets fell for five runs, and Danish Kaneria wrapped up the rest of Northamptonshire's batsmen as they bowed out for 261. Chasing a target of 3, William Jefferson hit a four with the second ball of Essex' innings, thus ending the game.(Cricinfo scorecard)

totesport League

Division one

Essex v Northamptonshire (8 July)

Essex (4pts) beat Northamptonshire (0pts) by five wickets

Essex Eagles recorded their seventh win in eight attempts in the National League, cementing their place at the top. After Northamptonshire Steelbacks won the toss and batted at Chelmsford, three run-outs and Grant Flower's bowling, which yielded three for 21, saw them go from 185 for 5 to 200 all out. Essex's reply was secured by a healthy 90 not out from Flower after Essex had struggled initially, being 95 for 4. 29 not out from Dutch-South African Ryan ten Doeschate sent them past the target with ten balls to spare.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Division two

Sussex v Kent (8 July)

Sussex (4pts) beat Kent (0pts) by four wickets

Sussex Sharks regained the lead in Division Two of the National League with a win over Kent Spitfires in a low-scoring match at The County Ground, Hove. Sussex' Pakistani cricketers Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Mushtaq Ahmed took three and two wickets respectively, reducing Kent to 106 for 7, before James Kirtley mopped up the tail with three balls remaining of Kent's innings, for 155. Then, a fiery opening spell from Simon Cook, who had hit an unbeaten 28 with the bat, resulted in three quick wickets (he ended with excellent figures of three for 15 off nine overs) and sent Sussex down to 22 for 4. However, Michael Yardy and Carl Hopkinson paired up for 103 for the fifth wicket, and Yardy's 65 anchored a nervy chase as Sussex reached the target with 3.3 overs remaining.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Ricky Ponting, Australia's captain, had so far had a difficult series against the English. In five innings this summer, his highest score was 34, in the no-result at Edgbaston, and his batting average was a meagre 16.40. However, on a Lord's track that suited the batsmen, he was back into his old magnificent form, guiding Australia back on track to victory, and levelling the NatWest Challenge.

It started well for Australia, too. Including Michael Kasprowicz in the squad and gambling on winning the toss and subbing one of their bowlers off, they won it - and Kasprowicz got immediate reward. After the English openers had survived the opening overs of McGrath and Lee to be 25 for 0 after eight overs, Kasprowicz was brought on, and Strauss chopped an inside edge onto his own stumps. Nine balls and three runs later, captain Michael Vaughan was hit on the pads by an inswinging delivery from Glenn McGrath and was out for 1. Marcus Trescothick and Kevin Pietersen soon followed to the pavilion, and England were - yet again - staring down the barrel at 45 for 4.

However, England weren't undone that easily. Waiting for Jason Gillespie, who had been conceding many runs all series, Andrew Flintoff and Paul Collingwood paired up for a calm 103 in a little over 20 overs, before Collingwood became Brett Lee's second victim of the day, luring Collingwood to attempt a cut shot off a fast, short ball and edging to keeper Adam Gilchrist. England's resistance didn't end, however, and despite Lee ripping out wickets - ending with five for 41 - the lower-order combined, eking out 30 from the last 21 balls to lift England to a somewhat defensible total of 223 for 8.

And, when Andrew Flintoff was brought on as the fourth bowler to be used in six overs, and removed Gilchrist with his second ball of the day, things looked hopeful for England, but that was as good as it ever got. Ricky Ponting smashed fourteen fours and a six on his way to 111, making a century off 105 balls, Michael Vaughan was forced to wait with the power play overs, Simon Katich, Damien Martyn and Andrew Symonds played well-paced innings, and England found themselves unable to contain the Australians. The end was always in sight, eventually coming with 34 balls remaining, Darren Gough bowling a no-ball - his third of the day - to gift the game to Australia. It was symptomatic of Gough's poor series, and indeed, he had Gilchrist bowled off a no-ball in the very first over. His bowling analysis for the game read 6.2-0-43-1.(Cricinfo scorecard)

This match was eerily similar to the one two days earlier - except that Jason Gillespie actually got rewards with the ball, and the batsman to play himself into form was Adam Gilchrist - however, both England and Australia picked batsmen as their supersubs, just like on the 10th of July. Australia won the toss, chose to field to gain an extra batsman, and had England on the rack.

They never recovered. Despite another skier being dropped, this time by Adam Gilchrist, and the crowd enjoying Gillespie dropping more catches whilst practising in the field, Australia's dominance and fine fielding on the ground saw more England wickets fall. In 27.5 overs, they only mustered 93 runs - for the loss of six wickets, with Michael Vaughan, Andrew Strauss, Andrew Flintoff, Paul Collingwood and Geraint Jones all out. A desperate situation meant England had to use their substitute, putting on Vikram Solanki for bowler Simon Jones - and Solanki helped save England to some respectability, along with Kevin Pietersen. Solanki made an unbeaten 53 and Pietersen 74 as England posted 228 for 7.

On a flat, unresponsive pitch, England's bowlers (now without the subbed-off Jones) were helpless. Gilchrist smashed an 81-ball ton, with an array of shots all around the ground, and eventually ended on 121 not out. Three of the English bowlers conceded more than six an over - Steve Harmison, with 81 runs off 9.5 overs, Darren Gough, with 37 off four, and Ashley Giles with 64 off ten. The two wickets the English got - Matthew Hayden caught behind for 31 and Ricky Pontingstumped for 44 - were largely pointless.

In all, it was a comprehensive victory for Australia, probably one of their easiest on the entire tour - possibly excluding the 19-over demolition of Bangladesh in game six of the group stage, with the biggest excitement being when the officials and players were presented to His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh in the break. The Duke was at the ground to officially open the new OCS stand at the Oval. He took the opportunity to lead the tributes to umpire David Shepherd, on his retirement from international umpiring. Former British prime minister Sir John Major and current Australian prime minister John Howard also sent tributes to Shepherd.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Tour match

Leicestershire v Australians (15-17 July)

Match drawn

Australia were having difficulty choosing between an out-of-form Jason Gillespie (8 wickets at a bowling average of 50.37 in the ODIs) and an almost equally out-of-form Michael Kasprowicz (7 wickets at 34.29), and thus this match with Leicestershire was a fight between the two to keep the place in the Test team. But the two almost exclusively failed to take wickets, with only Brett Lee and Stuart MacGill taking more than two for the match. Lee opened the game by removing Darren Robinsonlbw for a golden duck, and Leicestershire eventually subsided for 217 - Australian Chris Rogers top-scoring with 56, Lee taking four for 53. Australia then amassed 582 for 7 over the next day and a half, Justin Langer (115), Ricky Ponting (119) and Damien Martyn with an unbeaten 154 all making centuries. However, it was Rogers who was to make the highest score of the match, as he added with Robinson for 247 for the first wicket - and went on to make a career highest score of 209, right in front of the Australian selectors. When the fifth Leicestershire wicket fell with the Leicestershire score on 363, both teams agreed to a draw.(Cricinfo scorecard)

C&G Trophy Quarter-Finals

Lancashire v Sussex (15 July)

Lancashire beat Sussex by 35 runs to progress to the Semi-Finals of the C&G Trophy

Surrey v Hampshire (15 July)

Hampshire beat Surrey by two wickets to progress to the Semi-Finals of the C&G Trophy

Despite an unbeaten 158 from Jonathan Batty, Surrey still lost their quarter-final game at The Oval, having first batted to make 358 for 6 in 50 overs. James Benning with 73, and Graeme Thorpe with 60, also contributed, as Hampshire used seven bowlers who all failed to keep their conceded runs below six an over. In reply, Azhar Mahmood served up a wicket maiden over in the first over of Hampshire's innings, leaving Hampshire 359 to win with nine wickets in hand, but Shane Watson and Craig McMillan put the visitors from the south back on track with a partnership of 81 for the fourth wicket. When McMillan was run out, Hampshire were 200 for 4, but Watson powered on to make 132, his highest career List A cricket score to boost Hampshire to 342 for 8 when Tim Murtagh broke through his defences. By then, it was too late, as Shaun Udal completed his 44 not out, having added 63 with Watson for the eighth wicket earlier, and Hampshire made it to the target with thirteen balls to spare - although they had been gifted eleven extra balls due to no-balls and wides.(Cricinfo scorecard)

Warwickshire v Kent (15 July)

Warwickshire beat Kent by five wickets to progress to the Semi-Finals of the C&G Trophy

Yorkshire v Northamptonshire (16 July)

Yorkshire beat Northamptonshire by 33 runs to progress to the Semi-Final of the C&G Trophy

Michael Lumb with 89 and Ian Harvey with 74 lifted Yorkshire to 270 all out at Headingley in the fourth quarter-final of the C&G Trophy. It was a bit of an implosion from 227 for 3, but runs came thick and fast in that period, so Yorkshire wouldn't be too disappointed with losing their wickets. Northamptonshire started well, getting to 163 for 2 after all their top four got starts, but two wickets from EnglandTest bowler Matthew Hoggard started to turn the match. From then on, the Northamptonshire effort just stopped dead, as they lost five wickets for 24 runs to fall to 216 for 9. Steffan Jones and Jason Brown paired up for 21 for the last wicket, but it was too little, too late.[1]